


i'll be your shelter

by OxSwan26



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/F, Fluff, SO MUCH FLUFF, also there's implied sex, look i just want lin to be happy, maybe kinky, oh i have no betas, tenzin just freaks and i think it's hilarious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-04-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:46:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23431138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OxSwan26/pseuds/OxSwan26
Summary: Everything has returned to normal, even Lin's routine of having a drink after work. But not everything has to return to boring.orLin and Kya reunite after the war.
Relationships: Lin Beifong/Kya II
Comments: 13
Kudos: 221





	i'll be your shelter

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I just wanted to say, English is not my first language and I have no betas, so this might be not that good since my writing is a lil rusty. Anyways, I truly hope you like it!

Lin loved one thing, and one thing only - her job. She was strong and brave and fearless, and that’s all they needed. That bravery moved her up to detective, and her intelligence secured her the title of Chief of Police.

She also had some routines hardwired into her brain, like drinking a whiskey or two after work, always at the same bar.

By the time she walked inside, there were two glasses of whiskey laid out in front of a stool at the end of the counter, away from the very few people inside. She sat down and drank one of the glasses straight away.

“Tough day?” the bartender asked.

“If one more triad pops up, I will kill someone. Preferably the entire triad, but just a few of them will do.”

“I already put two whiskeys on your tab. Tell me if you want to add more.”

“Sure.”

Lin grabbed the second glass and twirled it around, making the liquid inside swirl up and down. If someone interesting was at the bar, she’d watch them. Study the way they talk, the way they move. That’s how she climbed her way up, not by being nice to people, but by knowing how they function. Knowing their strengths, and most importantly, their weaknesses, was the key.

As she was taking her first sip of the second glass, the bell on the door rang, and Lin turned her head to see who had arrived.

The woman wore a blue dress that hugged her waist and flowed down, dropping off her shoulders. On top of it, a beautiful piece of lighter blue fabric wrapped around her body, bringing the entire look together. The woman’s gray hair was caught in a messy ponytail, with two loose strands framing her face.

Lin watched her gracious movements. She looked familiar, yet Lin couldn’t come up with a name.

“Hi. Vodka, please. Don’t be shy when you pour,” the woman said to the bartender.

Now, that attitude was something Lin recognized. Kya, daughter of Aang and Tenzin’s sister had just entered the bar, and she had just stared at the woman, taking in the details of her clothes, of her body.

Before Lin could say anything, Kya joined her with a glass of vodka.

“Lin Beifong, how’s life?”

“Not good. But no news there.”

Lin downed her other glass of whiskey and took Kya’s features in again. This time, she focused on her face. Her blue eyes shone wherever they went, but the sunset cast the perfect light, and they were now two dancing balls of water being bent, floating in harmony. Just like the water Kya bent.

“I have news I think you’d like,” Kya started, “I am here to stay.”

Kya was here. And she was going to be here forever. How long was forever?

“Wow. Plans?”

“I want to be closer to my family, so maybe I’ll stay on the island. Or maybe I’ll get an apartment that overlooks it. As for a job, I was thinking the hospital. I want to heal people, just like my mom. Or create a waterbending school.”

A silence fell over them, but it wasn’t awkward. It brought on feelings Lin wasn’t familiar with. And yet, she could place it perfectly. Kya felt like home.

Kya’s eyes took her up and down.

“You know what? Tenzin must be really busy with all the new airbenders. I’ll get an apartment in the city. Do you know where I can go to get one? Or rent?”

“My apartment overlooks the harbor, you can stay there until you find a place,” Lin said. She regretted the decision to speak as soon as she finished her sentence. It must have been the whiskey, because the word “rash” was not in her vocabulary whatsoever.

Lin regretted her decision even more when Kya grabbed her hand. “Thank you so much! It’s so comforting to stay with someone you know. I don’t have much stuff, just a small bag, so it won’t bother you too much.”

_ You don’t bother me at all,  _ Lin thought, but she knew better this time and just tried her best to do something that resembled a smile but not quite.

“It’s getting late. Can we go get my things from the harbor?”

“Okay.”

***

Lin carried Kya’s bag with her left shoulder, letting the woman explore their surroundings. Every time she carried someone’s bags, it was because her officers had just arrested them. But this bag meant happiness; Lin was happy to carry it close to her body.

“We’re here,” she said, pointing to the regular entrance of a not so regular apartment building.

Lin let herself walk to her apartment with Kya following just behind. Her fingers slid over the lock and opened the door.

Kya joined Lin under the doorframe, and for just a little moment, Lin didn’t want the rest of the world to exist. She wanted Kya to create one of her water bubbles and just enjoy the company.

That spell was broken when Kya threw herself on the couch, completely ignoring the bed she had just passed.

Lin laid Kya’s bag next to it, took off her jacket and put it in her closet. When she came back, Kya already had a book in hand and was engrossed by it, not noticing Lin’s heavy footsteps.

Lin sat on the bed and took off her boots. She was careful to not make noise and disturb Kya’s reading.

Again, Lin found herself appreciating Kya’s features. Her defined jawline was enough to break someone’s heart, and yet, everything about her face was soft.

Kya put the book down, and Lin was smart enough to stop staring before she turned around. What was wrong with her? She’d stared like this at a few people, but it all happened years ago. Tenzin. And everyone knew how things ended with Tenzin. Since then, her eyes have landed on a few people here and there, mostly women, but not many people overall.

“Everything okay, Lin?” Kya asked. Lin forgot she was a healer, not only physical but also spiritual, just like Katara.

“Yes. Bathroom’s that way, kitchen’s this way. Make yourself at home.”

Lin bent off the rest of her metal armor and let herself rest on the bed, her soft clothes being the only thing that protected her body from anything.

Before she noticed, Kya had joined her. The woman was sitting at the end of the bed, her blue eyes focusing on Lin’s.

“I’ll ask again. Is everything okay?”

What was she supposed to do now? Dump all her life frustrations on a kind woman that just wanted to help? Or was she supposed to stare at her body until her mind went crazy? Neither sounded like good options.

“I haven’t seen you since-”

“-Tenzin. Yes. Were you around for the breakup?”

“No, but I was happy to hear someone was brave enough to kick his ass. He needs that every once in a while.”

Lin smiled. Again. It wasn’t her idea of a typical night, just… showing her emotions and being in the company of another person who was, frankly, one of the only people she’d ever let in.

Kya sat closer to Lin, and now they were sitting next to each other, legs hanging off the bed.

“I don’t remember you having this scar when I left.” Kya turned Lin’s head with her hand.

Instinct told Lin to grab Kya’s her, to just hold it like it was the only good thing in the world. And that’s what she did.

“It was my sister.” This was not a memory she wanted to remember. A weird guy had already crammed needles into her skin and made her live through hell.

“Your sister? Su is one of the most peaceful people I know.” Lin could see Kya was baffled. When Suyin was still around, Kya spent hours of her day with her. That is, when her sister wasn’t being dumb enough to run around with a bunch of criminals.

“It’s… a long story. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“I was going to ask if you want me to heal it, but I’ll ask something else. Do you want me to ease the pain?”

Ease the pain. Ease the pain. The scar didn’t hurt, but now that Kya mentioned, it was definitely something annoying, and the memory that came along with it kept tormenting her dreams and her days. “Okay.”

Kya reached for her pouch and took a small bottle of water. “Remember my mother? She gave me this vial of water from the North Pole. It has special healing properties.”

Lin didn’t say a word. She just let Kya bend the water around her scar.

Warmth radiated from the little droplets that gathered on her skin. Yet, her face hadn’t been splashed with some water, it had been carefully wrapped in a sheet, fresh with life.

Kya put the water back in the vial. “Is this good?”

Lin leaned forward. She didn’t know what she was doing. This was not in her plans when she had invited Kya to stay. But when Kya smiled, she threw all the previous plans out the window.

They kissed. The world around them faded away, letting them be in their own little bubble, just like she wanted.

Kya wrapped her legs around Lin’s waist, sitting on her lap. Lin fell back on the bed and let Kya take her wrists and pin them against the bed.

This was not in her plans, but it was much better than what she came up with.

***

“Lin, we’ve been going out for two months. I’ve even moved in with you definitely. Everything will be fine.”

Right now, they were on a boat headed for Air Temple Island, a place that showed up in Lin’s life every time she tried to forget it. And this time was no exception.

As the boat got nearer to the island, Lin started to make out a few kids running around in air scooters. They were no doubt Tenzin’s. But there were many more.

She turned to Kya. “You just want to cause some chaos, don’t you?”

“Everyone thinks Bumi’s the crazy one, but when I want to cause chaos, I will be ten times worse than him.”

“I’ll have you know that I’m still the Chief of Police.”

“That’s why you’re on my side.”

Kya bumped Lin with her elbow. Normally, Lin would smack whoever dared to do that to her, but she just smiled.

***

The first few steps on the sand were enough to remind Lin of what happened the last time she visited the island. To her recollection, she spent most of the visit tearing rocks from every place she could fathom and throwing them at Tenzin, who ended up almost falling from the top of the temple. After threatening him with a boulder triple her size, Lin understood he wasn’t worth her trouble and left the island in the same boat she came in, but this time with none of the rage. Maybe a little.

“Lin, you okay? We can turn back if you want to, the boat’s right there,” Kya said. She put a hand on Lin’s shoulder, and she was calm for the first time in years after thinking about the disaster.

“I don’t think there’s any turning back now,” Lin answered. She pointed to a bunch of children flying towards them, holding on to their gliders. Three of them were unfortunately easy to identify.

Jinora, with her tattoos, was now an airbending master. Ikki was trying to follow her sister’s footsteps, and Meelo was looking to cause some trouble. As for the other children, Lin couldn’t care less.

Those pesky little kids ran up to Kya and showered her with affection.

“Aunt Kya!” Ikki screamed.

“Stop annoying me, Ikki, get your hands off of me.”

“Meelo, that’s not nice to say to your sister,” Kya said. It was a natural gift.

“Aunt Kya, I’m so happy to see you again.” Jinora was much calmer than her siblings, and chose to hug Kya after Meelo and Ikki were off, playing with their gliders.

Lin did not know what to do. Kids were never really her thing, and now there were many of them living with Tenzin. She reminded herself of why she accepted Kya’s offer as she moved towards the stairs.

“Lin, you all right?”

“Yes, it’s just… kids are not my thing.”

“I understand. I love Jinora and Ikki and Meelo, but having kids of my own? No, thanks.”

Lin sighed with relief and they walked up the stairs. That relief lasted about ten seconds - Ikki and Meelo were at the top, waiting for them.

“Aunt Kya, why did you bring the police?”

“Ikki, Lin and I need to talk to your father, it’s very important. Can you get him for us?”

“Come on, Meelo, you heard her!”

The kids flew off into the temple. Lin looked up at the building. It looked as if someone had tore down the old one and rebuilt it from scratch, but she still remembered every single crack she made, and every single pillar she took down.

Lin found herself moving closer to Kya as thoughts of her less than good past kept surfacing. Without saying a word, Kya intertwined her fingers with Lin’s and they kept walking. They reached an area with a few benches and cover for the sun, and decided it was the perfect place to talk with Tenzin. Lin and Kya sat next to each other, occupying the two chairs available.

The gardens were full of life again, maybe even more than thirty years ago. Lin missed this, a place where she could just sit and relax and feel the earth around her. Republic City didn’t have private space like this, at least, not ones she could access legally.

From behind them, a man coughed, making them turn around.

“Tenzin?”

“Kya! What are you doing here? I thought you were with mom.”

“Korra and Asami are staying there for a while.”

“And what is she doing here?”

Lin fought very hard not to blow up like she had years back. Kya was right there, and there was no way Lin would hurt her willingly.

“Have a seat somewhere, little brother.”

Tenzin took a seat in the little balcony, blocking Lin’s view of the gardens. What a disrespectful man. His gaze shifted multiple times, but it was always the same - lovely eyes looked at Kya, daggers were shot into Lin’s body.

“Ikki and Meelo told me you two wanted to talk to me. Just one thing, don’t make a scene. Bumi is back and I’ve had enough trouble for the hour.”

“So, remember how I told you if I settled down, it would be with a woman?”

“Yes.”

“And how I wanted to eventually settle down in Republic City?”

“Yes.”

“Well, since I’m the smartest out of the bunch, I’ve currently done both!”

“That’s great. But why did you bring Lin with you?”

“Well…”

Lin watched the cogs turn in Tenzin’s brain. Kya was right, she was the smartest out of the bunch. She was also the most beautiful, the kindest, the-

“What the hell, Kya?” His cape flew back.

In this moment, Lin was trying her hardest not to laugh right in his face. Kya smiled and reached out for her hand, which she gladly accepted. No one said a word, yet Tenzin kept gesturing and gesturing and flailing his arms around like an idiot.

“Lin, wha-why? What have you been doing?”

“Oh, we’ve been doing many things.”

“I did not need to know that.”

“You asked for it, little brother.”

“You know what? Good for you two, I’m truly happy. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have… airbender issues to turn to.”

Behind him, something crashed.

“Your cue,” Lin said.

Tenzin flew away, finally leaving them alone.

“Are you okay? I know your history with Tenzin is tense. This must be really hard for you.”

“It was. But my favorite person is right here.”

Kya laughed. She had dimples that looked so cute when she laughed, Lin loved them. “I’ve turned you into a softie, I can’t believe it!”

“I have a reputation to maintain, be careful.”

“Sure thing.”

Kya extended her hand. Lin took it, and for a moment, a little moment, she was the happiest person in the world.

**Author's Note:**

> If you'd like to volunteer to beta read future LOK fics, message me on IG (@ceo.asami), either to volunteer or to chat :D


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